Why it's interesting

Sales in the mobile communications division fell by 14.7 per cent to ¥384.5bn. "This decrease was due to a significant decrease in smartphone unit sales resulting from a strategic decision not to pursue scale in order to improve profitability," the company said.

Revenue in the film division increased 27 per cent, to ¥262.1bn, largely thanks to the latest Bond film, Spectre.

The devices division did not fare as well, with a loss of ¥11.7bn yen in the quarter after Sony announced a ¥30.6bn yen impairment on its battery business. It cut its forecasts for full-year operating profit to ¥39bn from ¥121bn.

The company added that it expects to report a Y140bn full-year profit for the twelve months to the end of March, compared to the Y126bn loss it reported the year before.